Breaking Bread

April 20th

A friend wanted to learn to bake bread this weekend; we whipped up a couple loaves of the infamous No Knead variety. I must say, this bread is great for soup but not the best for everyday stuff –like sandwiches. The crust is too hard. I’m going to keep playing with the recipe. I am envisioning a whole wheat nutty loaf that would be good as toast for breakfast or a kick ass hug around some turkey for lunch.

You know who has amazing bread in Phoenix? Wildflower Bread Company. They sent me a $50 gift card this week for some contest I didn’t realize I’d entered, much less won. I highly recommend the sweet potato sandwich. It’s like Thanksgiving on a bun.

~K

{On a completely different note — many of the local gang have asked about the community garden details. This Friday we’ll be planting in the morning and could use your help. Shoot me an email if you want directions and details.}

You know, I’m picky about my bread crust, too, and when the No Knead stuff was too rip-the-roof-of-my-mouth-off crunchy for sandwiches, I just let it spend less time uncovered (almost none at all) in the oven.

Then, once cooled, I stored it in a plastic zipper bag with a paper towel so that it’d fend off mold but soften a little bit with whatever moisture the towel didn’t absorb. Worked pretty well.

Also, seeds are in the mail today to you. Wish I could help planting! Good luck!

I’m loving the whole homemade bread thing — the actual physical making process, the delicious aroma as it’s baking, and the yummy goodness of tasting that first freshly-baked piece. Wednesday I’m making homemade French bread again to go with our spaghetti dinner.

I love making bread, but have yet to try the no knead kind. Even though I live in So Cal, my Mom’s in Prescott Valley and when we visit I have to go to the Sunflower Bakery and get the sweet potato sandwich, my fav. I started making my own version, since I crave the sandwich and cannot be in AZ. Congrats on the $50 gift card.

Kelli – for a softer crust, smear butter all over the bread (crust) as soon as it comes out of the oven this always gives me a soft crust. I suppose you could use olive oil but I do it like my grandma showed me.